No Compromise

Nate Chapnick | Photo: Courtesy of Mercedes-Benz | February 27, 2014

With a host of innovations, Mercedes’ 2014 E63 AMG speeds ahead with power and safety.

Simply put, four wheels are better than two. Thankfully, Mercedes robustly agrees, which is why, for the first time ever, it’s making the E63 AMG with standard all-wheel drive. At last, Georgia’s country roads, or those laden with snow, ice or rain, are no match for this high-performance luxury sedan.

Open the hood and it’s clear that the E63 is a singular Mercedes. Each engine bears a plaque, placed front and center on the cover, displaying this particular vehicle’s builder’s signature, and demonstrating in no uncertain terms that this E63 is genuinely one-of-a-kind.

Start the E63 up and stand back: Its 5.5-liter twin-turbocharged V8 offers up one of the throatiest exhaust notes of any four-door vehicle on the road. For the truly horsepower hungry, the E63 offers a new S-Model for an additional $7,000. This package ratchets torque up from 530 to 590 lb.-ft., and horsepower from 550 to 577, resulting in the S-Model screaming from 0 to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds and topping out at 186 mph. That makes this four-door quicker than both the Porsche 911 and the new Corvette Stingray.

Despite its enormous power, one needn’t be a professional race car driver to handle the E63, thanks to its 4MATIC all-wheel drive system. The car feels reassuring on the road, remaining planted in corners, due, in part, to its Torque Vectoring Brake, which automatically brakes the inside rear wheel to increase the responsiveness of the car when turning into a corner.

While aesthetically opulent, with hand-finished wood and real aluminum trim, the interior is also dedicated to safety. Among other innovations, Nappa leather seats keep drivers and passengers from sliding with unique active side bolsters that squeeze tighter when the car gains a little too much momentum.

The focus on safety doesn’t end there. Implementing radars to detect possible obstacles, Collision Prevention Assist warns drivers of an impending potential accident and, when necessary, preps the brakes for maximum stopping power. With Pre-Safe Plus, the E63 even initiates braking on its own when an impending collision with a pedestrian is sensed, at speeds up to 30 mph. If a collision does occur, the E63 cushions occupants with up to 11 airbags.

Available at Mercedes dealers this month, the 2014 E63 AMG, with its new 4MATIC all-wheel drive system, proves once and for all that, in the luxury-sedan sector, safety and power are far from mutually exclusive.